Hang On
by Maethorwen of Atlantis
Summary: AU What if Padme hadn’t given up on life? What if she realized she had to hang on? oneshot, Obidala by the end


**Hang On**

Summary: (AU) What if Padme hadn't given up on life? What if she realized she had to hang on? (one-shot, Obidala by the end)

Disclaimer: I don't own Star Wars or any familiar character. I'm not making money.

Note: This is starts out AniPadme. Obi-Wan helps Padme see that she has to hang on and they live together. It ends Obidala.

"Obi-Wan, there's still good in him…I know there's still good…" Padme whispered.

"Padme, you have to hold on," Obi-Wan said.

"I can't," She whispered weakly.

"You have to hang on, for your children," Obi-Wan said.

"I can't face the future alone," Padme said sadly.

"You won't be alone. You'll have your children," Obi-Wan reminded her.

He didn't know what they would do if Padme died. He didn't know what would happen to the children.

"What about you?" Padme asked wearily.

"I will be with you if you need me," Obi-Wan said.

Padme realized that even though Anakin was gone, she had something to live for. She had her children. And she had Obi-Wan. She knew her dear friend would be there for her. He always had been. She had just never paid enough attention to see it until now.

"I do need you. I'm not ready to be alone yet," Padme told him.

"Then I'll be here," Obi-Wan assured her.

Padme fell asleep a few moments later. Obi-Wan sat next to her the entire time. He knew she wouldn't want to be alone when she woke.

"Obi-Wan?" Padme asked sleepily when she woke.

"I'm here," Obi-Wan said.

"I knew you would be. You don't have to stay, but you have. I wanted you to know I really appreciate it. Thank you," Padme whispered.

"You're welcome. It's the least I can do," Obi-Wan said honestly.

"What's going to happen to the children and me now?" Padme asked.

She was almost afraid to find out.

"That's partially up to you. You can keep them and hide on a safe planet or Bail has offered to take Leia. In that case you could either keep Luke or he could go to Owen and Beru on Tatooine. The final decisions will be made based on what you want," Obi-Wan told her.

Padme thought for a moment.

"Palpatine thinks I was only pregnant with one child. That means that at least one of them could be safe. Let Bail take Leia. He'll take good care of her. I want to keep Luke. I don't think I could handle giving them both up," Padme whispered.

"Bail and Yoda want to meet with you when you're ready," Obi-Wan told her.

"What about you?" Padme asked.

"I'll be in the meeting as well," Obi-Wan said.

Padme frowned slightly. That wasn't what she meant.

"I mean where will you go?" Padme asked.

"That depends on what is decided. If you send Luke to Tatooine, I will go there and keep on eye on him. If you don't, I'm not sure where I'll go," Obi-Wan told her.

Padme met with Bail and Yoda a few hours later.

"Decide what to do we all must. Into hiding Obi-Wan and I must go. Hide as well you and the twins must Senator," Yoda said.

"There are several options," Bail said.

He explained the choices. They were the same things that Obi-Wan had told her earlier.

"Bail, I want you to take Leia. As far as Palpatine knows, if he knows I'm still alive, I only have one child. If you take Leia, he won't find out about her. I want to keep Luke though. I can't give them both up," Padme said.

"Agreed that is. Where will you and Luke go?" Yoda asked.

"I'm open to suggestions," Padme said.

"Tatooine would be a good option. Anakin hates that planet. He won't go back unless he absolutely has to," Obi-Wan said.

"Naboo most likely isn't safe. Alderaan may be safe for you. Otherwise, I think Obi-Wan is right," Bail said.

"I agree that Naboo wouldn't be safe. However, I don't want to go to Tatooine," Padme said.

The majority of the memories associated with that planet were bad. The good ones were also painful because they reminded her of Anakin. She didn't want to go back to that planet.

"I think that for right now Alderaan may be Padme's best bet. Bail could protect her until we have a permanent solution," Obi-Wan said.

"Right Obi-Wan is. A final solution we cannot come to now," Yoda said.

"Where will you two go?" Bail asked.

"To Dagobah I will go," Yoda said.

"I'm not sure where I will go," Obi-Wan said.

"Why not come to Alderaan. I would feel better knowing that you were there to protect Padme and the children as well," Bail said.

"I would feel better as well Obi-Wan," Padme told him.

"Looks like I'm going to Alderaan," Obi-Wan said.

They spent six months on Alderaan. They realized it would be too hard to mask Luke's Force presence that close to Coruscant. It was hard for Padme to leave Leia, but she knew it was best for her daughter. So Padme, Obi-Wan and Luke headed for Tatooine. They built a home in the desert.

One night Obi-Wan sat thinking about all that had happened. Padme was reading a book across the room.

"One day he will ask questions about his father," Obi-Wan told Padme.

"I know. But that won't be for a long time," Padme said.

"We have to decide what to tell him," Obi-Wan told her.

"We cannot tell him that his father is Darth Vader," Padme said seriously.

"So we tell him part of the truth. We tell him that his father was Anakin Skywalker, but that he died before you gave birth. That way he will know his father's name, but not all of what happened," Obi-Wan said.

"I wish Anakin had been strong enough to resist the darkness. You're right. He's changed. I've heard about the evil things he's done. He's not the Anakin I married. That Anakin is gone," Padme whispered.

She started crying. She missed Anakin. It was worse because he was alive but changed then it would be if he had died. She tried to look at it the way Obi-Wan did, that the Anakin they had known and loved was dead, but she couldn't. She could also see that it didn't really work. She could see how upset Obi-Wan was.

Obi-Wan crossed the room and pulled her into a hug.

"I miss him Obi-Wan," Padme whispered.

"I know you do. So do I. So do I," Obi-Wan told her.

At first nothing changed about their relationship. Then one day they started to grow closer.

Padme watched as Obi-Wan played with a two year old Luke. They were playing with some blocks. Padme watched them building random shapes.

She smiled. Obi-Wan was so good with Luke. Luke's first word was daddy. Obi-Wan had been a little embarrassed. Padme had told him that night that it was okay. Obi-Wan was going to be the only father figure Luke was going to have. So Luke called Obi-Wan daddy. Watching Luke grow up was making her miss Leia. She wanted her daughter with her, but she knew it was best for Leia to stay hidden.

Luke yawned.

"Time for a nap Luke," Obi-Wan said.

"No daddy," Luke said.

Luke could be just as stubborn as Anakin at times. Neither would admit it, but it had both Padme and Obi-Wan worried.

"You need to take a nap," Obi-Wan told him.

Luke said nothing, but stood up. Obi-Wan carried Luke to his room. By the time he came back a few minutes later, Padme had cleaned up the blocks.

"You're so good with him, Obi-Wan," Padme said.

"He's such a sweet child. It's a shame he has to live on this Force forsaken planet. He should have been able to live with you and his father on Naboo. It's not fair to him," Obi-Wan said.

"You sound like you're feeling guilty again," Padme said.

"I am. His father should be here with him, not me," Obi-Wan said sadly.

"Anakin made his own choices. As much as we wish we could we can't change them," Padme pointed out.

"I know," Obi-Wan said sadly.

"Seeing him grow up makes me miss Leia. I wish she could be here with us," Padme said sadly.

"I can't imagine how hard it is for you. Giving up your child even to protect them, it's heartbreaking," Obi-Wan said.

Tears started to stream down Padme's face. Obi-Wan hugged her.

"I can't do this Obi-Wan. Waking up alone everyday with only the memories of being loved, I can't do it. Every time I wake up I pray it was all a nightmare, but then reality sets in and I'm left with only memories. Memories of being loved, then being hurt by the person I loved. It's so hard," Padme cried.

Obi-Wan held her. He knew she needed it.

"It's hard to lose someone we love. It's even harder when you didn't lose them to death, but to darkness. All we can do is ensure that light survives," Obi-Wan told her.

Their relationship changed that day. They both admitted that Anakin was gone and they had to move on. They did.

A few days later, Padme made a decision that she knew would change her life. She hoped this one worked out better then the first time.

"Obi-Wan, I love you," Padme told him.

She was nervous about this. Her marriage to Anakin had gone horribly wrong. If anything went wrong this time, it would be the last straw.

Obi-Wan hadn't been prepared for that. He wasn't expecting her to say anything like that for along time.

"I love you to Padme," Obi-Wan replied.

He pulled her close. She wrapped her arms tightly around him.

'If I had only fallen in love with him in the first place, none of this would have happened.' Padme thought to herself.

She realized just how true that was. If she had fallen in love with Obi-Wan from the beginning, everything would have been different. She wouldn't be living on this planet, there would be no Empire, the Jedi would still exist. All of this had rested on one choice. It made her feel guilty. In a way, she had condemned the galaxy to this.

When she woke up the next morning, she was happy for the first time in two years. She wasn't alone anymore. She was loved again.

Six months later they decided to get married. Four months later, Padme found out she was pregnant.

"Obi-Wan, I'm 2 ½ months pregnant," Padme said nervously.

The memories of her first pregnancy were enough to scare anyone. She could only hope this one would be far better.

"Oh Padme, that's wonderful news," Obi-Wan said a moment later when he got over the shock.

He pulled her into his arms and held her close.

"It's twins again. I seriously should have asked if twins ran in my family. At least then I would have been prepared for it," Padme said.

"Fate does as it pleases. It doesn't care what people are prepared for," Obi-Wan told her.

"That's for sure," Padme said.

Three and a half year old Luke was happy to be getting siblings. He couldn't wait to be a big brother.

Six and a half months later, the twins were born. She gave birth to a boy and a girl.

"What are their names?" Luke asked curiously.

"Your little sister is named Alina. Your little brother is named Hayden," Obi-Wan told him.

Padme smiled. Old memories still plagued her from time to time, but her memories of her life now replaced them. She was happy with her new family. She was so glad she had decided to hang on. If she had given up, none of this would have happened. She could only hope that Luke would never meet his real father. She and Obi-Wan had decided to tell him about his real father when he turned 16. That gave them a little over twelve years to prepare. She wasn't looking forward to it. She could only pray he didn't encounter Vader before that. It would ruin everything. But for now, she didn't have to worry. Life was good.

THE END


End file.
